Do you need to whip up a quick gift to pop in a card for a teacher, or maybe you need an easy and rewarding project for a group of girls at Girl Guides/Scouts? This isn't just a great scrap buster, these are are very handy to have swinging from your keys too. Living in Canada, where the North wind blows, I appreciate having a chap stick handy!

Cyndi, from The Nosy Pepper, is joining me today with this quick and easy tutorial.

Let's get started!

I'm excited to share with you this tutorial on how to use Emmaline key fob hardware to make these quick and easy lip balm holders. I am a total lip balm addict, and I swear those little buggers are always getting lost in the bottom of my bags. Not any longer! Now you can whip one (or four) of these holders up and always have your lip balm handy. Pick up your key fob hardware HERE.

Supplies:

(1) 5" x 6 1/2" piece of fabric

(1) 2 1/2" x 6" piece of interfacing (I tried several but found I liked shape flex 101 the best, the others end up very structured and make it harder to get your lip balm out)

Step 1)

Gather your fabric and interfacing. Fuse the interfacing in the center of your fabric, with the bottom edge aligning with the bottom of your fabric. It will look like this:

Step 2)

Turn down the top edge of your fabric ½” and press (the top is the side that the interfacing is ½” from the edge). The top of the fold should be right where the interfacing meets the fabric.

Step 3)

Now press your fabric in half lengthwise to create a center crease. Then open your fabric up and then fold the edges to the center crease you made. Press well.

Step 4)

Top stitch the top edge of your fabric (the end that you pressed under) using a ⅛” seam allowance.

Step 5)

Now take your fabric measure from 1 ¼” from the raw edge of the fabric.

Use your marking pen to draw a line across .

Fold the bottom edge up to this line pin or clip in place.

Step 6)

Stitch down the long sides using a ⅛” seam allowance. I chose to use a longer stitch length (I used 4) as it is topstitching however it is IMPORTANT if you are going to use a longer stitch length that you STOP just before you get to the edge that your fabric is folded up to and shorten your stitch length (I used a 2.5 length at this point) and backtack at the point that the top of your fabric. A longer stitch length isn't strong enough to hold up to the stress of pulling your lip balm in and out (I learned this the hard way). Once you feel like you have secured the top edge you can lengthen your stitch and continue on to the short edge of the fabric.

Step 7)

Repeat the previous step on the other long side of your fabric. It will look like this:

Step 8)

Gather your Emmaline key fob hardware, some scrap fabric (or I grabbed a kitchen towel) and a pair of pliers. Slide the raw edge of your fabric into the the bottom of the hardware. Using your scrap fabric to protect the pretty metal edge of the hardware, pinch firmly with the pliers to secure your key fob hardware in place.

Step 9)

Add your key chain, lip balm and enjoy!

These cuties take less than 10 minutes to stitch up and also make great gifts. You could whip together dozens in a couple hours and use for back to school gifts.

One of the easiest ways to increase your confidence in sewing zippers is to make some zip pouches. They are also great gifts because who doesn't need at least one zippered pouch in their handbags?! I love the Manhattan Zippered Casebecause it's not just your plain Jane rectangular zip pouch. The rounded bottom and the additional front zip pocket lets you load it up with all that stuff that’s rolling around in the bottom of your bag. A bonus is that with a wrist strap, she could easily double as a clutch for a night out.

Another reason to love this little lady is that she is so quick to sew up. Although she's a bit fancier with her two zippers, she really doesn't take any more time than a normal zip pouch. You could easily knock one out in during nap time or after dinner.

The top panel is a great way to add a contrast, like this one with orange cork. Or you could just use the same fabric for a uniform look.

This is great project for the scraps of your much loved prints that you've been hoarding.

TASSEL TUTORIAL:
This is also a great project to add a bit of bling, like these tassels. You can find the caps to make these here and the tutorial to walk you through step by step HERE.

Hey Bag Makers! We've got some great new strap attachments in the hardware shop at emmalinebags.com, and Cyndi from The Nosy Pepper is going to run you through this easy tutorial so you can see how easy they are to apply. The strap anchors come in either shiny nickel or gold finish and are available on our website: HERE

How to Attach our Edgwena Strap Anchors

The Edgwena Strap Anchors are a great way to add some bling to your bag and are super easy to install. Sew up your bag as you normally would (minus adding the straps of course) and install the strap anchors at the very end of making your bag. Normally, adding new pieces of hardware at the end stresses me out, but these are so super easy to install. So much easier and quicker than having to add fabric tabs to your bag.

Important: make sure that you reinforce the area that you will be attaching your strap anchors to. I used flex foam on the exterior of the bag, which gives a bit of support (and bulk) so I just added a few layers of woven interfacing on the lining side of my bag. If you plan on only using fabric without any kind of stabilizer, consider adding some peltex to give the screws something to bite into without adding stress to your pretty fabric.

Once you have completed your exterior, gather your Edgwena Strap Anchors, the itty bitty screws, some fray check, a marking pen and a small Phillips screwdriver (I used one that came to change batteries in toys).

Mark where you want your Edgewenas to sit on the top of your bag:

The easiest way is to find your centre point of the bag top and then measure away to both the left and right of centre. Once you are happy with your placement, use your marking pen to mark where you want them:

Now the fun part. Slide your Edgwenas on and make a mark to denote the screw holes on the lining side of your bag:

Once you have marked your fabric, get your awl out and punch through the lining fabric and into the stabilizer below (***be careful you don't punch all the way through to the exterior, you don't need to go that far***) Add a drop of fray check into your holes.

Once you have your “pilot hole” slip your Edgwena back on and grab your screw driver and your baby screws. Those buggers are slippery so I found out the best way is to just grab one out of the bag at a time (don't make the same mistake I did!)

Go slowly, these tiny screws strip out really easily. It's easier if you start to screw it in a couple turns then slide it back on your bag, taking care to line the hardware up with your “pilot holes”. They have to be set in just so or else they cause you to want to say bad things as you unscrew them for the fourth time.

Now that your Edgwenas are all in place, we need to make some straps!

I made 1” wide straps, but ¾” would also work nicely. Go through the tedious process of fusing, pressing and stitching your straps:

Once they are done, just attach them through Edgewena’s loop and stitch them down like you would any with any other ring.

And you're all done! Easy peasy and so much quicker than making strap tabs. They look so professional and add a class to any bag.

Here's my gorgeous new cork bag with it's lovely straps, and seriously, this took no time at all.

We'd love to see the beautiful and imaginative ways you have used your Edgwena Strap Anchors too! Please share your photos in our facebook group "Emmaline Sewing Patterns Group", as well as tag us on instagram with @emmalinebags and hashtags #emmalinehardware #emmalinebags. We love to see your work!

About Me

Welcome to the blog! I'm Janelle, and I run a growing bag making supply and pattern design company up in the very cold areas of Canada. This is the place to find info on upcoming patterns, contests & free sewing tutorials and patterns.

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A Note

The contents of this blog, including text, original photos and ideas are the sole property of the author.
If you intend to use my text or images, please link back to this blog and give credit to Emmaline Bags & Patterns. A notification email would be greatly appreciated too!
Please do not ever republish an entire post, any tutorials, or post photos of my family.
Thank you, Janelle